Many types of ventilating devices for toilets have been developed. Most of these prior art devices have never been commercially exploited to any great degree. It is believed that the complexity and expensive construction of these prior art devices are the reasons that they have not successfully entered the marketplace.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,617,687 discloses a ventilated toilet seat which is specially designed to define a passage therein having inlet ports through which the gas passes. The passage in the toilet seat is connected by a flexible conduit to an evacuation device that removes the odors exteriorly of the room.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,094,023 discloses a ventilated seat including a suction tube, which is interconnected by conduits to an evacuation fan arrangement.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,301,555 discloses a replaceable filter for deodorizing the gases from a toilet bowl. The filter is secured to the lower surface of the toilet seat and is provided with ports through which the gases pass. The filter is connected by a vacuum pump line to a vacuum pump, which may be mounted in any convenient location.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,174,545 discloses a ventilating device for toilet bowls, which includes an air chamber structure having a shape generally conforming to the toilet seat. The air chamber structure is connected through an exhaust line to an exhaust fan for exhausting the gases exteriorly of the area.
These prior art Patents are representative of the prior art devices which have been developed, and it will be seen that all of them include specially constructed evacuation fans, which must be positioned to remove the gases from the immediate area. None of the prior art devices are designed to be used in conjunction with the conventional ceiling fans typically provided in conventional bathrooms of many residential homes.